A hogback running nearly 100 miles north and south through central Utah is the defining spine of Capitol Reef National Park, but this ruddy landscape offers many more geologic and cultural wonders.

Though the park draws its name from domes of white Navajo sandstone and the angular reefs of rock that reach for the sky, reds, tawny buffs, blacks and browns also paint Capitol Reef. And green, in the form of sweet-scented fruit and nut orchards planted by Mormon settlers late in the 19th century that continue to bear apples, pears, apricots, cherries, plums, mulberries, almonds and walnuts. Those alone are reason enough to visit this national park come harvest season.

That's just part of the introduction to this guide, which provides a great overview of the park in central Utah. There are sections on how to negotiate the park by vehicle, camping, hiking and backpacking, even geology.